Being led to guide us into the true purpose for which we were placed, I assigned that we all look through the Epistles to find out how the Patriarchs, (Paul, Peter, John etc.) prayed.  To discover the hows and whys, in an effort to find out just how WE should pray.  This miraculous undertaking has been filled with spiritual road pointers, so that there is NO DOUBT as to what God has in mind.  I just was led to this article that I simply must share.  May YOU find it enlightening as I did.  

Pray Until You Pray

A Simple Way to Begin Each Day  an article by Jonathan Parnell Pastor, Minneapolis, Minnesota

You begin every day with prayer, one way or another.

In his book The Common Rule, Justin Earley explains that unless we create new habits of gospel prayers in the morning, we’ll start the day with some kind of “prayer” we’ve borrowed from the world. Whether it’s anxiety-ridden regret or self-sufficient resolve, something fills our minds as soon as we awake, directing us to look beyond ourselves, or at least deeper within. And here’s the thing: unless we intend for our prayers to accord with truth, they won’t.

What would it mean to start the day differently — to pray according to truth? It would mean, for starters, that we don’t merely look beyond ourselves (and certainly not within), but to God alone. That sounds simple enough: start every day praying to God according to truth. We soon realize, however, that praying truth as a daily habit can feel complicated.

For one, regularly praying truth means we say many of the same words again and again. We address God in the same ways, declaring the same realities. We don’t say them in vain repetition, but we do repeat them. For example, God is truly our Father in heaven every time we pray, and so we say it — if not every time, at least repeatedly.

And unless we’re only asking God for various things, our praying will involve adoring God for his attributes (which never change) and thanking him for his gifts (which are constant), and this also means repetition. But in repeating the same truths, what if we slip into a kind of wooden formalism? What if we end up just going through the motions?

One Problem After Another

This is a danger. Habits, by definition, become second nature to us; we do them almost involuntarily, without needing to work up our wills. But if that’s where praying truth takes us, does that mean our prayers are insincere (or less sincere)? Have we just dug ourselves into a deeper hole? To remedy the first problem of not praying daily according to truth, have we now spun off a second problem of wooden formalism?

While wooden formalism is indeed possible, we also should consider the alternative danger of banking on creativity and spontaneity to carry our prayer life. How creative and spontaneous do we suppose we should be? Do we imagine that our praying to God should follow the same patterns of our dialogue with friends? Are we to approach him with no agenda, whether his or our own? Perhaps we assume we should pray as we’re guided by whatever seems to come up during our time together, as if we were sitting across from a trusted confidant, cup of coffee in hand.

As romantic and authentic as this idea might seem, the problem with this type of creative praying — at least for many of us — is its impracticality. It makes one especially vulnerable to what D.A. Carson calls “mental drift,” which makes sense given one obvious difference between God and your coffee friend: God is invisible (1 Timothy 1:17). It’s not easy to carry on a conversation with an invisible person. It takes locking in our minds and hearts with unusual energy, which tends to wane. One reason crises improve our prayer lives is that they focus us, at least for a season.

Mental Drift

Carson describes what he means by “mental drift” in his book Praying with Paul, and it’s safe to say the experience resonates with all of us. He gives the following example:

Dear Lord, I thank you for the opportunity of coming into your presence by the merits of Jesus. It is a wonderful blessing to call you Father. . . . I wonder where I left my car keys? [No, no! Back to business.] Heavenly Father, I began by asking that you watch over my family — not just in the physical sphere, but in the moral and spiritual dimensions of our lives. . . . Boy, last Sunday’s sermon was sure bad. I wonder if I’ll get that report written on time? [No, no!] Father, give real fruitfulness to that missionary couple we support, whatever their name is. . . . Oh, my! I had almost forgotten I promised to fix my son’s bike today. . . . (2)

At risk in this experience is that we become so discouraged, maybe even cynical, that we give up praying altogether. We are so bad at it that trying feels like a waste of time.

But if we understand that prayerlessness is the greatest danger, then a wandering mind or mindless repetitions suddenly become more normal, part of our humanness in this age. It’s redeemed humanness in that we’re praying, but humanness still in that praying is a struggle.

Repeating True Prayers Habitually

Carson addresses these and other ailments with several lessons on prayer, including, first, that we should plan to pray; and second, that we should adopt practical ways to impede mental drift during those appointments. Among these practical ways he mentions vocalizing our prayers, praying over Scripture, and journaling our prayers. Following the same line of thought, I would add repeating true prayers habitually. In other words, pray the same truths at the same points every day.

This method applies both pieces of Carson’s advice: it makes prayer a regular practice, and it keeps our prayers on track. By repeating true prayers habitually, we kill a few birds with one stone: we’ve eliminated prayerlessness, we’ve mitigated the possibility of mental drift, and inasmuch as these repeated prayers are indeed true, we’ve directed our prayers according to truth, which was our problem from the start.

The final piece, and the one impossible to script, is how we keep these prayers real. For that, we need the ongoing grace of God. At the same time, it’s worth noting that repeating certain sayings every day doesn’t necessarily make them insincere. For example, I say the exact same things to my wife and children every single day, even multiple times a day, and I’ve never not meant it, even if sometimes I might say it with more zest than at other times. Zesty praying is a worthwhile hope — and may God grant it! — but our first goal should be starting the day with genuine prayer that accords with truth. Now how does that look?

Starting Every Day

Every day, at the earliest possible moment — before you check your phone or your mind starts preparing for what’s ahead, but after you’re mentally aware enough to think — consider reciting a simple prayer full of truth.

In The Common Rule, Earley provides this example: “Spirit, I was made for your presence. May this day be one I spend with you in all that I do. Amen.” Another example is a four-part petition taken from Psalm 51, or perhaps one from Psalm 143, or many other such examples found in The Book of Common Prayer. If our prayer lives accompany a life of Bible reading, then we have fresh opportunities each day to stumble into another pathway for prayer. Listening to God is one of the greatest preparations for speaking to God.

If possible, consider making this simple prayer habit a mile-marker throughout your day, with different prayers repeated at morning, noon, and bedtime. But start with the morning, since it marks what many call a “keystone habit.” The idea there, popularized by Charles Duhigg’s best-selling The Power of Habit, is that not all habits are equal. Some habits have the power to start a chain reaction. Duhigg writes, “The habits that matter most are the ones that, when they start to shift, dislodge and remake other patterns” (101). Repeating true prayers, every morning, can have that effect.

Learn to Pray by Praying

To be sure, this is not the only praying we do, but it is the praying we’re sure to do. Often, it can become a jump-start to longer, more conversant prayers — as the Puritans liked to put it, we “pray until we pray.” Carson reminds us of this Puritan persistence, which means we should pray “long enough and honestly enough, at a single session, to get past the feeling of formalism and unreality” (18).

Indeed, would that God would make that our habit! If it already is, then disregard all that’s been said here. But if that goal is still ahead, fellow redeemed humans, repeating true prayers habitually, every morning, might be your best next step.

The late J.I. Packer puts this all in context, as quoted by Carson:

There is no recipe for prayer that can work for us like a handyman’s do-it-yourself manual or a cookery book, where the claim is that if you follow the instructions you can’t go wrong. Praying is not like carpentry or cookery; it is the active exercise of a personal relationship, a kind of friendship, with the living God and his Son Jesus Christ, and the way it goes is more under divine control than under ours. . . . As in other close relationships, so in prayer: you have to find out by trial and error what is right for you, and you learn to pray by praying. (19)

Jonathan Parnell (@jonathanparnell) is the lead pastor of Cities Church in Saint Paul, Minnesota, where he lives with his wife, Melissa, and their eight children. He is the author of Mercy for Today: A Daily Prayer from Psalm 51. 

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” Proverbs 3:5-6

While I live in Florida (by choice), I have a family cabin (by grateful blessing) up in the Allegheny mountains. The flat terrain of home gives way to gorgeous vistas, foliage and the challenges that come by walking an incline. Along with the sights come trials and hardships of walking mountains since, no matter the destination, it is either up…or down. This makes every destination either work at worst, or a hike at best.

My father bought this slice of heaven almost fifty years ago, and it rests, almost at the base, of a mountain. Coming out the front door, out view is a mountain across the valley. Going out the back of the property is to go UP! One of the first things that I wanted to do when he bought it was to walk to the top of the mountain…just to see what was there! It is NOT a goal that very many adults have, because walking a mountain takes some skill.

Going up, one finds, is harder than it looks. These mountains don’t have shear cliffs and drops offs like you might see in the Rockies, so a hike is quite possible. When coupled with sweat, good boots and a walking stick, it can be done. I think the last time I walked the back yard it took about 45 minutes to get to the top. Getting up was less than HALF the adventure. It is coming DOWN that presents the bigger challenge!

Because these mountains are covered with trees of all types and sizes, the entire place is covered in dead leaves. This makes the going a little more tenuous since underneath, there are rocks, holes and decaying matter that God is turning into more dirt. When it rains or snows, it only makes the slopes more slippery. Grabbing onto tree saplings and pulling yourself up is one way. Making a walking stick to help pull oneself up is smart. Though coming DOWN with a stick CAN prove dangerous!

It’s easy to see that animals who live there have a different way of going up a mountain. Deer trails don’t got up and down, they traverse the mountain, gently crisscrossing as they ascend upward. This makes the trip to the top longer, but much less difficult. Me being me, I usually don’t think things through like that because, as they say, “the shortest distance between 2 points is a straight line.” I just can’t seem to get it it my head that taking a longer course can actually get me there in better shape! Something God knows much better than me.

The Bible verse today is actually one of my all time favorites. NOT because it started out that way. But because, over the long tenuous course of my life, I have LEARNED…the HARD way…that God does not lie! Me means EVERY WORD He says. But I, knowing as much as I did, and having tried to take the shortcut so many times, carry lifetime scars both inside and out. Eventually the rebel inside just gave up and started paying attention. Imagine my shock when what He said…proved true!

Coming DOWN a mountain, like coming off of a trial, fall or crisis, can be difficult. I learned to actually RUN down mountains as a kid. The trick is to go down HEELS FIRST, digging into the dirt as you go. I found that if I started to slide, I could actually use my momentum to my advantage. Coming DOWN is faster than going up! But falls are more common.

Life is a mountain. Falls, hardships and pain are inevitable. But God! He SAID that He would have me, IF I would put HIM FIRST. Deer Christian… the question is…do YOU?

Fire

“Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our ‘God is a consuming fire.'” Hebrews 12:28-29

My lovely wife loves fire! One of the greatest highlights for her, when we visit ‘The Cabin’, is to sit around the fireplace in the evening. Which isn’t a surprise. Most people do! The cool mountain air becomes much more cozy when sitting in front of a warm fire. The light and sounds coming off of a well built fire only add to the ambiance. But first, someone has to BUILD a fire! That someone…is me!

Now before I get started, I don’t want to sound like I am an expert woodsman. Though I HAVE had LOTS of practice and have cut more than my share of wood! I learned how to build fires as a Boy Scout, then taught it through the years as a scout leader. But having ‘The Cabin’ forces me to put the ‘walk’ in my ‘talk.’ It doesn’t matter how much I KNOW if I can’t, or don’t, choose to apply it! ‘The Cabin’ is my proving ground.

A fire is nothing more than the rapid oxidation of a material in a chemical process called combustion. This process releases heat, light and other products in the form of ash, gas etc. Now almost no one knows this…though any kid with a match can replicate it well enough. But BUILDING a fire is NOT as easy as it seems. Without proper methods, materials and skill, I have watched MANY a person try! I CAN say, without doubt or braggery, that if you want a fire…I’m your guy! Which means ‘I’m’ the one that usually has to do the WORK involved in creating the ambiance! Which also means, I’m the one that usually smells the most like smoke!

There are tools that I have at ‘The Cabin’ that I DON’T have at home. Saw’s, splitters, wedges and mauls are needed to cut, trim, split and chop trees into actual fuel for a fire. There are things to know in order to do all of this, but nothing compares to the amount of energy and work needed to actually DO it! But I have to admit…I like it!

It’s actually enjoyable cutting big logs, splitting them down to size and then stacking them! Katie encouraged our joining a gym last year and honestly, I don’t really care for it. When I’m exerting energy necessary for a fire, at least I can SEE something from my sweat. It gives my efforts a point! A tangible goal or reason to actually do it!

There are different kinds of trees in the forest, and knowing them is important. Some, like pine, are called softwood. Others, like oak, ash and maple, are called hardwood. I have a saying up there that ‘softwood is for lookin’, and hardwood is for cookin’! The comment, “nice fire,” usually comes after seeing several big chunks of softwood are ablaze and brightening up the area. Hardwood burns hotter but isn’t as pretty at night. When it’s cold, the women like when I use both kinds so that the fire burns hot AND bright as well.

The process of fire takes a lot of effort and time. After cutting, hauling, splitting, stacking and drying, one needs to know HOW to actually BUILD a fire. And there are several types…tepee, box and lean-to fires just to name a few. It takes tinder, kindling, sticks and logs to eventually get the fire to the comfort level my wife likes. And just because it may have rained during the day is NO excuse to NOT have a fire at night! So learning to build a fire in wet and adverse conditions is a must. And yes.. I have stories!

God is a consuming fire! That is what the Bible verse says, so it MUST MEAN something! And it does. Ask anyone who has lost their home to a fire and they will tell you how devastating fire can be. Fire has no tolerance for anything less than itself. If something CAN be consumed, it WILL be. And unless the fire is stopped or put out, it will continue to burn and rage until there is no fuel left. And that is EXACTLY HOW GOD operates!

My flesh is consumable. Born in sin, I have NO HOPE of EVER becoming anything more than what I am. A sinner! And since God CANNOT tolerate ANYTHING LESS than Himself, something has to happen OUTSIDE of myself to make me tolerable to Him. And THAT something, is His Son, Jesus Christ. HE is ‘The One’ who takes my life, burns it to the ground and rebirths me into His image. It’s a LOT of work on His part. But He likes it! After all the years of being the object of His affection and the recipient of his light and warming love…so do I!

I have found that when I go to ‘The Cabin’ I am drawn to the woodpile, the fire place and the tools. I look forward to spending the time and energy it takes to make something lovely out of something dead and lifeless. It is no accident that I get the same results when I approach God each morning with His Word in my hands. As I voluntarily yield myself to the Master’s consuming fire, I am changed. Neither of us regret the process. And if I smell like His smoke and look brighter because of the process…well… isn’t that the point!

Are YOU on fire? If so, how hot and bright ARE you?

Cabin Chronicles

Somewhere, up in the mountains is a place we call, “The Cabin.” Which is a funny name for a building that USED to be a Church! And while I’ve been going up to those mountains all of my life, I only acquired this slice of Heaven back in 1974. My grandfather had a cabin north of us where I learned to walk and where I spent a great part of my childhood summers. Since God blessed us with our own, we have the joy of going to ‘The Cabin’ every summer to get away, rejuvenate and relax. It is the PERFECT place to spend time with Jesus. The following are just some of the blessings.

Mountain Spring

“Whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” Jesus John 4:14

People look at me funny when I tell them we don’t have running water up there! It’s like they can’t figure how someone could even LIVE without it! But we manage just fine. There’s a creek below in the valley for baths and, yes…it gets COLD! But we have a saying at the cabin, “It feels good once you get in!” Like with much of life…AND with a life of following, Jesus, it’s the initial ‘getting IN’ that’s the only problem!

Since we don’t have running water, we don’t have a bathroom toilet either! For that, we have our very own ‘Outhouse!’ And a fine one it is! When it comes to drinking and cooking water, we have what many of the small town folk still rely on, by choice! Simply called, ‘The Spring,’ it is a pipe that was stuck in the mountainside, and from which flows what WE think is the cleanest, coldest water in the world. Other than the pipe, it isn’t much different than the method folks used to get water back in Jesus day!

When we need water, we gather up our old milk jugs we have used in previous years, thread a rope through about 20 of them, and head to the spring. Like most things, there is a method to ‘getting water’. After removing the cap, we rinse out the jug, then blow HARD into it to make sure there’s no leak. We then rinse it out, fill and cap it, and take it back to the Cabin, where we let it set until the temperature drops and the condensation disappears off the jug. We have a special shelf inside to store them when they are dry. These last few years, as our family has grown, my daughter Cori added 5 gallon water jugs AND a battery operated dispenser! I guess we’re modernizing… but SLOWLY and in Cabin style!!

Back in Jesus day, it was the woman’s job to fetch water from the town well. There was no real STANDARD size for how big their water pots were. But at 8 pounds per gallon, plus the weight of the clay jar, it COULDN’T have been more than 1 or 2 gallons. I can’t imagine trying to fill up a 25 to 30 gallon water crock inside the house! That would be a LOT of walking and carrying! And SOOOO many little trips would need to be made to keep a family supplied. With CONSERVATION ALWAYS on the mind!

EVERYONE likes to ‘go get water’ when we first get to the cabin. The kids like it the best! But after a while, getting water becomes more like WORK than an adventure. Necessity becomes the motivation, and to the responsible family member with love at the center of every action, it really isn’t WORK as much as it is SERVICE! Which is why Jesus talked about and used water for MANY illustrations.

By the time I manage to GET to the cabin in the summer, I am PARCHED! Thirsty to get away, have a break and get renewed. But even though we have the ‘BEST’ water in the world up there, it isn’t water that I crave. It is HIM! I make a living at making Jesus available to others. But I STILL need to drink from His well myself. As I sat there this year, I was struck by the awesomeness of my life with Jesus Christ for well over 50 years. After ‘drinking a living’ from ‘His well supplied’ life, I can honestly say that He has NEVER lied to me. His Life is STILL the ONLY REAL thirst quencher for my soul. The ONLY thing that satisfies me.

What about YOU? What truly satisfies YOUR thirsty soul?